When should you stop bed sharing?

If you bed share, I’m sure you’ve heard from no end of people when you should stop.

Everyone seems to have an opinion on the right time for your child to be out of your bed.

Only you know the right time to stop bed sharing.

Don’t listen to all the advice you’re getting about when you should stop. As long as you’re safely bed sharing (if you want to read more about safe bed sharing, check out this blog post.), you can carry on for as long as your family wants.

So, how do you know when it’s the right time to stop? You’ll know, it may be that you are ready to stop sleeping next to someone who kicks you all night long, you may have had enough of waking up to someone sticking their finger up your nose, or you’ve had enough of sleeping teetering on the edge of the bed.

Sometimes the time you’re ready to stop comes suddenly; if you’ve reached your limit and can’t do another night, you may not know where to begin.

You want to begin preparing before you reach your limit.

That may not help if you’ve come here as you’re ready to stop tonight, but when you spend a little time preparing, moving away from bed sharing is much easier and gentler for your family.

Let me share a few tips for preparing your family. We have a masterclass in Slumber Academy where you can learn the gentlest way to prepare both you and your family for moving away from bed sharing.

Your child needs to be comfortable with the space you want to move them to. It doesn’t matter if that’s a crib or bed, in your room or a separate room. If they have never slept in the bed you want them to sleep in, they will have a tough time. Let’s get them comfortable with their new bed. That comes through play. Introduce playtime in their new bed every day. Start small with just a minute or two and increase the time they’re there as they become more comfortable with it.
If your child is moving to a different room, start doing your bedtime routine there. Just the first step to begin with, now your child will begin to associate their bedroom with sleep. As they become more accustomed to step one, you can do more and more steps in their room.

Always move at a pace that will work for your child’s unique sleep personality. Slumber Academy members can find the perfect timeline for your child’s unique sleep personality for moving to more independent sleep.